Monthly Archives: October 2012

Another recipe that uses Choux Pastry, Gougères is a savoury puff favored by the French as an appetizer.

This one freezes well so it is good to make extra. After baking, allow them to cool completely and then store them in freezer bags. Reheat in a preheated oven at 200C for 6-8mins or until very hot but not burnt.

Method :
1) Bring the milk, butter, salt, and cayenne to a boil in a saucepan.

2) Remove from heat, add the flour all at once, and mix vigorously with a wooden spatula until the mixture forms a ball.

3) Return the pan to the heat and cook over medium heat, stirring occasionally, for about 1 minute to dry the mixture a bit.

4) Transfer to the bowl of a food processor, let cool for 5 minutes, then process it until dough is cool.

5) Add the paprika (or mixed herbs) and eggs, one at time, and beat until well blended and smooth. It is important to make sure that each egg is well incorporated before adding in the next one.

6) Preheat the oven to 200ºC .

7) Line a cookie sheet with parchment paper. Reserve 1 tablespoon of the grated Parmesan cheese, then add all of the remainder and all of the Gruyère to the choux paste. Stir just enough to incorporate.

8) Using a tablespoon, scoop out a level tablespoon of the gougère dough, and push it off the spoon onto the cooking mat. Alternatively, put the mixture into a piping bag to do this. Continue making individual gougères, spacing them about 2-inches apart (this is to prevent them from sticking together during baking). Sprinkle a few grains of the coarse salt and a little of the reserved Parmesan cheese on each gougère.

While searching on the origin of Choux Pastry, I learnt that it was invented by a French chef known as Panterelli way back in 1540. How clever of him to think of this unique way of creating a pastry that when baked or fried, would result in a puff with a hollow inside that could be stuffed with different fillings.

Two common desserts available here that are made from this pastry are cream puffs and éclairs. I’ve yet to come across savoury ones being offered in cafes and bread/confectionary shops here. In France, a favourite among the locals there is Cheese Grougere, a savoury puff made with grated parmesan and gruyère cheeses and eaten as an appetizer.

Here is a basic choux pastry recipe that I believe you will have as much fun playing with as I do. You can create many shapes with this versatile pastry. I like to shape the baked puffs into swans, a dessert that never fails to raise eyebrows. I’ve also tried making them into fruit baskets. Be adventurous with the fillings – sweet or savoury, you can’t go wrong with it. Your family and friends will surely be delighted by your creativity.

If you have no time or find it troublesome to make custard cream, you can buy instant custard powder to make custard cream that is just as tasty – just add milk or water and beat for a few mins… that simple! It is available at bakery supplier store Phoon Huat. A 400gm pack is enough to fill 50 to 60 cream puffs.

(C)
3 large eggs (60gm each)
½ teaspoon vanilla essence (add this only if you are making sweet puffs)

Method :
1) In a pot, bring all the ingredients in (A) to a boil.

2) Remove from heat. Add (B) and stir with a wooden spoon quickly to form a smooth paste.

3) Transfer the paste into a cake mixer and beat until lukewarm. Add in (C) one at time and beat until well blended and smooth. It is important to make sure that each egg is well incorporated before adding in the next one. Lastly, add in the vanilla essence (if using for sweet dessert).

4) Prepare a baking pan with parchment paper. Put the batter into a piping bag fitted with a plain or star nozzle. Pipe elongated or round, regular, evenly spaced moulds on the parchment paper (do not place them too close as the puffs will rise and expand during baking).

For making ‘Swans’, use a large star nozzle to make an oval shape for the body and a small round tip nozzle to make a ‘2’ shape for the head and neck.

5) Bake in a preheated oven at 200ºC for 20-25mins.

6) When done, remove to a cooling rack.

7) Make a slit lengthwise and fill with desired sweet or savory fillings.

To make Swan, cut the baked oval shaped puff into half (for the ‘body’) and cut the top half into halves again (for the ‘wings’) as in this picture

Fill the ‘body’ of the Swan with custard cream

Insert the ‘head’ and attach the ‘wings’

dip a thin wooden stick in melted chocolate to dot ‘eyes’ and ‘beak’ on the head

2) In a saucepan, cook (B) until almost boiling. Remove from heat and add it gradually to (A)

3) Strain the mixture into a saucepan and cook over low heat, stirring until it thickens and boils.

4) Remove from heat and mix well with (C).

5) Cover the pan with a cling wrap or a wet tea towel to prevent a skin from forming on the top of the custard cream.

6) Leave to cool before use.

* For Chocolate Custard, add some melted chocolate to the cooked custard and omit the vanilla essence

the cooked cream custard

Suggestions for SWEET filling :

1) For éclairs : slice the puff lengthwise and fill the inside with coffee, chocolate, caramel or custard cream and drizzle the top of the puff with melted chocholate

OR

2) For cream puffs : slice the puff lengthwise and fill the inside with custard cream or whipped cream. You may also top the cream with freshly cut fruits like strawberries, kiwis, peaches, etc. Sieve snow powder over the top of the puff for a ‘snowy’ effect.

Suggestions for SAVOURY filling :

Slit the puffs lengthwise and fill with your choiced fillings such as :

It’s a Saturday evening and both my gals wanted very much to dine out but couldn’t find the time to do so. Sheryl was overloaded with office work and Shermaine had to study for a quiz. Craving for something special, we decided on homemade sushi for dinner. It turned out to be a good idea as we watched the enjoyable movie “ENCHANTED” on Channel 5 while chomping happily on assorted sushi, all in the comfort of our own home.

our assorted sushi platter with two different types of maki rolls and some stuffed inari beancurd wraps

Making our own sushi allows us to put in whatever ingredients we favour. For this dinner, we made three different types of sushi – a maki sushi with shrimps, avocado and shrimp roe, another with beef, egg and cucumber, and some seasoned inari bean curd wraps stuffed with a combination of chopped crabsticks, fried eggs, cucumber and shrimp roe mixed with mayonnaise.

To make sushi, it is advisable to steam the rice two hours ahead of your meal time so that you may season it and leave it to cool while you prepare the rest of the ingredients. The vinegar dressing for the rice should be added while the rice is still hot and absorbent.

Sushi is best eaten slightly warm or at room temperature, contrary to store-bought ones that are usually chilled in order to keep them fresh.

A bamboo rolling mat is necessary for making sushi. Most supermarkets sell this or you can get it at Daiso for only $2.

SUSHI

For sushi rice :
5 cups of calrose or japanese short-grain rice
5 tablespoons of seasoned mirin (seasoned Japanese vinegar dressing, available in supermarkets)

Method :
1) Cook the rice in the same way as regular rice in a rice cooker.
2) When done, drizzle on seasoned mirin and fold in quickly using a flat wooden spoon.
3) Transfer rice to a large bowl and leave in an airy corner to cool.

To make Sushi :
1 pack of nori seaweed
A tube of Japanese mayonnaise
Your choice of ingredients

Method :
1) Place a sheet of nori seaweed on a bamboo rolling mat. Spread a thin layer of cooked rice evenly over the nori but leave ½ inch on the top free from rice as you will need this to seal the roll.

2) Place your choice of ingredients horizontally across the rice and squeeze some mayonnaise over the ingredients. Take care not to place too much ingredients or it won’t roll nicely. (For this maki roll, we use cooked shrimps with avocado, cucumber and shrimp roe.)

3) Using the bamboo mat, roll it up carefully and evenly, pressing it firmly at the same time.

4) Remove the rolling mat and trim both ends of the maki roll and cut into 2cm length pieces.

5) Serve with Japanese soy sauce dip. For a spicy kick, add Japanese wasabi into the sauce.

Method :
1) Rinse the wraps gently in hot water to remove excess oil. Remove and pat lightly with paper towels.
2) Stuff the wrap two-thirds with the cool sushi rice.
3) Fill up with your preferred choice of ingredients such as tuna with mayonnaise, corn kernels with mayonnaise, chopped crabsticks with mayonnise, seasoned cooked octopus, etc.
4) Serve with a Japanese soy sauce dip. Add wasabi to dip if you prefer it spicy.

My nephew’s Chinese tutor from Shanghai taught my sister how to make a noodle sauce using salted fermented broad bean paste (doubanjiang). Instead of eating with noodles, my sister added silken beancurd to the sauce to eat it with rice instead. She gave me some of the paste to try and I like it. It’s actually a non-spicy version of Mapo Toufu, a popular Sichuan dish.

Fermented broad bean paste is available in most supermarkets and come in both spicy and non-spicy ones.

Method :
1) Heat 1 tablespoon of cooking oil in pan. Fry the minced garlic and sliced leek until fragrant.
2) Add minced meat. Stir fry for 1 min and then pour in the fermented broad bean sauce and simmer until meat is done.
3) Pour in the beaten egg and add the beancurd, spring onions and sesame oil. Mix well and let it simmer until egg is cooked. (There is no need to add more water than required as water will seep out from the silken beancurd while cooking.)